If we’re going punk-adjacent I’d suggest Debbie Harry. I think she should definitely be up with the other women on your list and maybe a good replacement for the now disqualified ON-J.
OB
Siouxsie Sioux, too. Although she’s a lot younger than Harry.
ETA: in looking up singers ages, I was surprised that Shirley Bassey is still around and kicking . Although I guess she belongs more n the 60s thread.
If we’re doing New Wave, I’d put David Byrne above her.
And are we counting Sting as 80s?
I would consider Sting as 80s (The Police were late-70s as it was), and I’d place him as contemporary with Phil Collins and Bono.
Surprised Floyd hasn’t gotten a mention, David Gilmour at least. Then again the deep schism in the band may very well have dimmed their collective star, combined with how their public profile as individual celebs and performers wasn’t anywhere near as prominent as say the members of Zep or Who (I also now notice that the latter hasn’t been mentioned either).
Gilmour and Waters have already been mentioned.
I think The Who is much less visible / audible to the kids / young adults these days than Floyd.
They’re also as much a 60s band as a 70s one.
Well, he has had a fairly extensive solo career, including some fairly high-profile work with Alison Krauss, but maybe not quite enough to put him above other names on the list.
Marvin Lee Aday (aka Meatloaf) died last year. Did he make a big splash?
You bring up an interesting point: What do we learn when we look back on those who have passed away in very recent years? What kinds of splashes did different rock/pop stars make upon passing recently? And were any of them surprisingly outsized or surprisingly muted?
I don’t think anyone on the list (or anyone else I can think of) has remained an icon as long as Elton John has. I don’t think anyone else comes close. Springsteen is worth mentioning but I think he would have an impact in the US only. Elton would be international
Eric Clapton may be a dick, but surely he belongs on this list. His peak popularity as a solo artist was in the 70s.
And speaking of dicks who peaked in the 70s … Van Morrison.
I put Clapton on the 60s list. Yes, arbitrary, I know.
As for Morrison, sadly true. Yet his 1970s albums from Moondance to St. Dominick’s Preview comprise a run equal to anybody. I regularly re-listen to Preview. Did so yesterday. It’s breathtaking. If I were doing this by my own likes he would beat out everybody on my list, topped only by Donald Fagan.
I wouldn’t say arbitrary. In my opinion, for what little it’s worth, he peaked with Cream, which had its big run entirely in the sixties (a couple of reunions after that, but no big deal).
Right, which is why I wrote “as a solo artist.” Lots of casual fans might not know him from Cream, much less the Yardbirds or Bluesbreakers, and until the 70s he was never a true frontman (singing as well as lead guitar).
But he’s still well below the top two on the OP’s list.
As I’m listening to my Elton John playlist…
Elton John is number 1.
Others that came to mind:
Peter Cetera
Don Henley
Tom Scholz